Fall Sports Synopsized

Women’s Soccer

Undefeated in the ivies, the Crimson side (14-2-1 overall, 6-0-0 Ivy) won their fourth league title in five years. Harvard had a sterling run this fall, dropping only two matches, both by 1-0 scores. The first, an early loss to New Hampshire, was far less consequential than the second, against Boston College (BC) in the second round of the NCAA tournament. The NCAA playoffs seeded Harvard, the Northeast’s top team, eighth in the nation, earning them a bye in the first round. They were favored against BC and indeed dominated the game, taking 23 shots to 11 for BC and earning 10 corner kicks to BC’s four. Yet the Harvard onslaught never found the net, and so the Crimson season ended prematurely with an upset.

Back Jessica Larson ’00 was named Ivy League Player of the Year, and goalie Cheryl Gunther ’03, who posted an ultra-stingy 0.44 goals-against average, was Ivy Rookie of the Year. Seniors Gina Foster and Ashley Berman and freshman Bryce Weed joined Larson on the all-Ivy first team. Beth Totman ’03 led Harvard with 19 points on six goals and seven assists; fellow frosh Joey Yenne followed her with six of each.

Over the regular season, Harvard allowed only eight goals, the fewest recorded against any team in the country. The Crimson blanked eight opponents.

Men’s Soccer

In their first season under new coach John Kerr, the men’s soccer team (6-9-2 overall, 3-4-0 Ivy) finished fifth in the league. Despite several injuries and a tough schedule that included three top-20 sides, the young team showed its mettle by surviving a rough midseason patch of six winless games to finish strongly, winning four of its last five matches, including a wild 4-3 victory over Penn in the season’s finale. In the closer, Harvard jumped out to an early 2-0 lead only to see the Quakers knot the score by halftime with two goals tallied 24 seconds apart. Penn went up 3-2 in the second half, but then it was Harvard’s turn to fire both barrels, putting in the tying and winning goals within 42 seconds.

Senior forward Armando Petruccelli, junior back Ryan Kelly, and freshman sweeper Mike Lobach were all-Ivy selections, Petruccelli repeating on the first team, Kelly and Lobach chosen for the second team. Petruccelli led the Crimson in scoring with 18 points on seven goals and four assists. His point total tied for fifth-best among all Ivy players. In 57 career collegiate games, Petruccelli accumulated 15 goals and 20 assists for 50 points.

Field Hockey

The field hockey team (12-7 overall, 4-3 Ivy) tied with Cornell for fourth in the Ancient Eight, behind Brown and Princeton, which tied for first, and Dartmouth. The Crimson closed its league season on a satisfying note, handing Brown their only Ivy loss of the year, a 3-2 win in overtime that forced the Bruins to share the league title. In the ECAC tournament, Harvard handled Drexel, 2-1, but then fell, 3-0, to Dartmouth.

Star defender Katie Schoolwerth ’00 (see “First on the Turf,” November-December 1999, page 96) repeated as a First Team Regional all-American. She also made the all-Ivy First team for the third time. Senior Anya Cowan was another all-Ivy First Team selection. Dominique Kalil ’00 led the Crimson stickwomen in scoring, with 24 points on 8 goals and 8 assists.